On the tragic day of September 26, 1960, 69-year-old Blanche Boggs, a white female, was found murdered in her Spokane, Washington, residence. A widow who had resettled in Spokane following her husband's death in 1948, Boggs was the victim of what appeared to be a home invasion. The assailant gained entry through an unlocked window, and the disarray at the crime scene indicated a violent and desperate struggle had taken place.
It was determined that she had been sexually assaulted and killed before the perpetrator fled through the back door.
The investigation into the brutal slaying ultimately led authorities to Hugh Bion Morse, a 30-year-old man with an extensive and disturbing criminal past. His history was littered with violent crimes that spanned several states, including rape, burglary, assault, attempted murder, and child molestation. Morse's violent streak was evident early on; he was dishonorably discharged from the Marine Corps in 1951 following an arrest for indecent exposure and assault. In 1955, he was committed to a state hospital in California after attempting to molest two eight-year-old girls, only to be released in 1957.
Blanche Boggs was identified as the second known murder victim in a violent crime spree carried out by Morse between 1959 and 1961. After her death, he continued his rampage, attacking and attempting to murder other women across the United States. His escalating violence led to his placement on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list in August of 1961. The nationwide manhunt for Morse came to an end on October 13, 1961, when he was apprehended in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Following his capture, Morse confessed to a number of murders, including that of Blanche Boggs. In December 1961, he was sentenced to two life terms in prison in Minnesota. Nearly two decades later, in 1979, Morse was extradited to Washington state. There, he pleaded guilty to the murders of both Blanche Boggs and another woman, Glorie Brie, as well as the assault of Beverly Myers. As part of his plea agreement, he received a lifetime of probation for these crimes under the condition that he never return to Washington. Hugh Bion Morse spent the remainder of his life incarcerated, dying in prison in April 2003 at the age of 73 after serving 42 years of his sentence.
